Egyptian artist Heba Y. Amin is a multidisciplinary artist and educator whose research-based practice is focused on political inquiry and understanding of colonial archival history. The field school was invited for a personal tour by Amin of her solo exhibition "When I See the Future I close my Eyes: Chapter II" (2022) displayed at Zilberman Gallery, Berlin. This artist visit was truly an engaging space for learning and inspiration. Her exhibition showcases Amin's tactical methodology of artistic competence and research that pushes discourse further. In her works she explores how art can become a tool to instigate thought-provoking inquiries and to move these questions and ideas beyond the exhibition space. During our discussion, Amin highlighted her critique of technologies and how they are embedded in political and colonial discourse while also used for reconceptualization and recontextualization in her own work by surrounding questions of how can we can use these tools for emancipation and critique.

Amin discussed each work in the exhibition which included: Windows of the West (2019), created through the Jacquard weaving process and based on the engraving of the first photograph of the Palace and Harem in Egypt; Atom Elegy (2022), based on the atomic bomb image in which the French government conducts a simulated testing site in 1960 to participate in the atomic bombing; The Devil's Garden (2019), a memorial pyramid for Hans-Joachim Marseille. The students were encouraged to ask questions throughout the tour. A major theme of discussion surrounded Amin's research process, development and the obstacles involved when trying to engage with archival history. Amin's attempts to extract the predatory gaze of early image-making that was an extension of early colonial making were ultimately embedded in its initial practice. She overrides fabricated histories for new contemporary narratives. Visit Zilberman Gallery’s website to learn more about Amin’s exhibition: When I See the Future I close my Eyes: Chapter II" (2022) Zilberman Gallery.

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